Now, this is not to say that the relationship between Publix and the Florida GOP is completely innocent. There are several questions about the monetary contributions Publix has made to the campaigns of Republicans, their involvement in paying for the January 6th terrorist attack on the capitol, and their selection by Ron DeSantis over another pharmacy like CVS to distribute the vaccine. Publix does not reach as many communities of color as some larger pharmacies, so it is somewhat confusing why Publix was chosen over a business that can reach a wider swath of the population assuming the goal of vaccine rollout is to vaccinate as many people as possible. However, I do think that the map indicating that Publix locations in red counties are getting vaccine shipments simply because they are in red counties is misleading and leaves out some information that paints a more complete picture about why vaccines need to be provided by pharmacies in these areas as opposed to blue counties in Florida.

In today's age it is really easy to manipulate images in order to paint a picture that is incomplete. Many people rely on images like the one of Publix locations getting vaccine shipments to shape their political views and opinions. That is dangerous because anyone can make an official looking image and share it on social media regardless of whether or not it is accurate or portrays all information about an issue in an appropriate light. This issue is not a Democrat or Republican issue, but is instead a consumer issue. Gullibility on the internet is the reason why 5-Minute Crafts is so popular online. People view videos with insane looking thumbnails that look like they just might be real, and they don't look into proving or disproving the content of the videos any further because simply viewing someone "fix" a wine stained rug by dumping lemon juice on it is satisfying enough for people to believe it is true and share it with others. This same gullibility is what allows conspiracies to spread online like the conspiracy that Publix is working with the Florida GOP to only vaccinate Republicans, or the conspiracy that Dominion voting machines were hacked to count votes for Biden twice. I think the moral of the story is that when you see something, especially an image online that lights a fire in you and makes you feel strongly about a specific topic, you should always look into the origins of that image, the specifics and accuracy of the content, and the ways it may be trying to play into your own preexisting biases or outlook in order to be spread online. Be skeptical of information that is presented to you in meme-format and don't share something online that you aren't sure is true or accurate. These simple steps can help us start to move down the path of being more aware of the media we consume, and towards healing as a nation from divisions caused by misinformation and disinformation online.